Unexpectedly low decrease of NO
2air pollution – Correlation with
ozone concentration and altered exhaust emissions
Werner SCHOLZ* & Peter RABL**
* LUBW • State Institute for Environment, Measurements and Nature Conservation Baden-Württemberg, D-76185 Karlsruhe, Germany – email: [email protected]
** Bavarian Environmental Protection Agency, D-86177 Augsburg, Germany
Abstract
An analysis of air pollution data of nitrogen oxides and ozone over the last 16 years was performed for the German federal states of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria, covering more than 60 air quality monitoring stations. These stations were clustered into four groups according to their distance to road traffic.
At highly traffic-influenced sites the total nitrogen oxides (NOx) and also nitrogen monoxide (NO) show a distinct decrease, in accordance with the reduction of NOx emissions of vehicles, whereas
nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentrations reveal only a modest decline or even a slight increase at
some sites. This is an obvious discrepancy to the calculated development of NOx emissions.
The ratio NO2/NOx exhibits a pronounced increase at urban monitoring sites. Ozone
concentrations in cities show a comparable increase in the mean, probably because of reduced degradation reactions.
One explanation for these divergent trends is based on the photochemical balance between NO,
NO2 and ozone. Another, and probably important, reason seems to be a large increase of direct
NO2 exhaust emissions as a result of the growing number of modern private diesel cars equipped
with oxidation catalysts, producing high NO2/NOx ratios by the oxidation of NO. The database
concerning reliable NO2 (not NOx) emission data of modern cars and exhaust treatment equipment
is yet insufficient.
From the NO2 and ozone concentration trends over 16 years it is concluded that the EU air quality
limits of NO2, valid from 2010, may then be exceeded at locations with a heavy traffic burden.
Keys-words: Air pollution trend, traffic-related pollution, nitrogen oxides, nitrogen dioxide, diesel
passenger cars, oxidation catalyst, exhaust after treatment.
Résumé
Une analyse des moyennes annuelles en oxydes d'azote et en ozone fut effectuée pour la période de 1990 à 2005 pour les stations de mesure de la qualité de l'air de Bade-Wurtemberg et de la Bavière. Tandis que le niveau de pollution atmosphérique de NOx et de NO a diminué distinctement, en conformité avec le développement des émissions de NOx, seulement une petite
diminution, partiellement aussi une augmentation, s'est manifestée aux concentrations de NO2 près
de rues très fréquentées. Une explication pour cet effet est vue dans l'équilibre photochimique entre NO, NO2 et ozone. Une autre raison est la composition changée du gaz résiduel des voitures diesel.
Les voitures particuliers modernes diesel sont équipées avec un pot catalytique d'oxydation qui
transforme NO en NO2, de sorte qu'une partie importante de l'oxyde d'azote est directement émis
comme NO2. Par conséquent, un dépassement des valeurs limites pour NO2 en 2010 sera
vraisemblable à proximité de rues très fréquentées.
Introduction
The development of NO2 air concentrations at highly traffic-influenced sites is contrary to the
decreasing trend of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. A trend analysis of air concentration data from monitoring sites in Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria was performed to identify the reasons.
1 - Development of nitrogen oxide emissions
Road traffic is the main source of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. In 2000, road transport accounted for 48% of the total NOx emissions in Germany (Umweltbundesamt, 2004) and for 51% in Baden-Württemberg (UMEG, 2004). Between 1990 and 2002, total NOx as well as traffic NOx emissions showed a continuous decrease of about 47-48% (figure 1).
Development of NOx emissions in Germany (kt NO2/a)
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 Agriculture Military Industrial Processes Small scale combustion units Manufacturing and Construction Energy Industries Offroad transportation Road transportation
Figure 1: Development of NOx emissions in Germany, in kt NO2/a
(Source: Umweltbundesamt, 2004)
Figure 1: Evolution des émissions d’oxyde d’azote en Allemagne, en kt NO2/a
2 - Development of nitrogen oxide and ozone air concentrations
Based on the calculated decrease of NOx emissions, a corresponding decrease in NOx air concentrations should obviously be expected. For the trend analysis, the monitoring sites were classified into four groups according to their distance from road traffic. The results for Baden-Württemberg are presented below; the analysis of data for monitoring sites in Bavaria yielded similar results (shown in Rabl & Scholz (2005)).
NOx air concentrations show a distinct decrease which is most pronounced in main roads and at urban sites with traffic influence (figure 2). The observed decrease in these groups is by a factor of 53% and 51% respectively between 1990 and 2005, in good correspondence with the calculated emission trend. The graph of the development over time is reasonably fitted by a linear approximation.
NO air concentrations exhibit an even steeper downward trend at main roads and urban sites than the NOx concentrations. Only in the rural background NO remains essentially unaltered at a very low level (figure 3a).
In contrast, NO2 air concentrations do not exhibit a corresponding decrease (figure 3b): In urban
areas the downward trend is more moderate than that one of NOx and NO (-33% to -37%), whereas in direct vicinity of highly frequented streets almost stagnation is observed, in some cases even an
NOx air concentrations in Baden-Württemberg y = -3,449x + 6971 y = -7,499x + 15149 0 50 100 150 200 250 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 NO x a s NO 2 (µ g /m ³) main roads (6)
urban traffic influence (5) urban background (18) rural background (4)
Figure 2: Development of NOx air concentrations in Baden-Württemberg 1990-2005
(annual means, calculated as NO2; number of monitoring sites in parentheses)
Figure 2: Evolution des niveaux d’oxyde d’azote (NOx) à Baden-Württemberg de 1990 à 2005
(moyennes annuelles, calculé comme NO2; nombre de stations en parenthèses)
This trend of NO2 concentrations will turn into a problem for the air quality situation in many cities
during the next years. As can be seen from figure 3b, the NO2 annual mean concentrations at main
roads are considerably above the EU air quality limit of 40 µg/m³ valid from 2010. Even a further considerable reduction of motor vehicle NOx emissions would only have a perceptible effect several years later.
NO air concentrations y = -6,9979x + 14093 y = -2,4882x + 5012,7 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 NO a s NO 2 (µ g /m ³)
NO2 air concentrations in Baden-Württemberg
y = -0,5012x + 1055,6 y = -0,9608x + 1957,9 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 NO 2 (µ g /m ³) main roads (6) urban traffic influence (5) urban background (18) rural background (4)
Figure 3a, b): Development of a) NO and b) NO2 air concentrations in Baden-Württemberg
1990-2005 (annual means, number of monitoring sites in parentheses)
Figure 3: Evolution des niveaux a) de NO et b) de NO2 à Baden-Württemberg de 1990 à 2005
(moyennes annuelles, nombre de stations en parenthèses)
Nitrogen oxides are emitted from combustion processes mainly as NO and subsequently oxidized to
NO2, usually in the atmosphere. Therefore the ratio NO2/NOx increases with increasing distance
from the emission source. The analysis of the measured NO2/NOx ratios shows pronounced
increases at the urban and traffic influenced monitoring sites (figure 4). At main roads, in 1990
about 25% of the NOx consisted of NO2 (Rabl & Scholz, 2005), whereas in 2005 the proportion of
NO2 was increased to more than 40%.
NO2/NOx ratio in Baden-Württemberg 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 rural background (4) urban background (18)
urban traffic influence (5)
main roads (6)
Figure 4: Development of the NO2/NOx ratio in Baden-Württemberg 1990-2005
(annual means, number of monitoring sites in parentheses)
Figure 4: Evolution de la relation NO2/NOx à Baden-Württemberg de 1990 à 2005 (moyennes
annuelles, nombre de stations en parenthèses)
A similar picture is obtained from the analysis of the ozone trend (figure 5). For the site type "rural background", a slow decrease with annual variations is observed, whereas in the cities - at a lower level - a distinct increase in the annual mean is recorded, suggesting a gradual adjustment of the urban and the rural situation.
Ozone concentrations in Baden-Württemberg
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 µg /m ³ rural background (4) urban background (18) urban traffic influence (5) main roads (2)
Figure 5: Development of ozone concentrations in Baden-Württemberg 1990-2005
(annual means, number of monitoring sites in parentheses)
Figure 5: Evolution des concentrations d'ozone à Baden-Württemberg de 1990 à 2005
(moyennes annuelles, nombre de stations en parenthèses)
The increase of the ozone annual mean values in cities is not interpreted as an enhanced formation, but as a reduced degradation of ozone due to reduced emissions of primary pollutants, mainly NO.
3 - First explanation: Photochemical balance
The parallelism in the development over time of the NO2/NOx-ratio and ozone points to a
photochemical correlation between nitrogen oxides and ozone. A simple approach is the well-known photo-stationary equilibrium:
NO2 + O2 NO + O3
According to the law of mass action the following relation results:
[NO] · [O3]
k = with k = constant of equilibrium.
[NO2]
Figure 6 shows that this explanation applies quite well. The product [NO] · [O3] is plotted against
the corresponding NO2-concentration for the air quality monitoring sites of Baden-Württemberg
between 1990 and 2003. Each point in the graph represents the mean values of one site and one
year. A satisfying linear correlation is obtained for urban and main road sites (with k ≈ 35). The
deviation in rural background is probably caused by the measuring inaccuracy of low NO-/NO2
-concentrations. This result underlines the photochemical balance between NO, NO2 and ozone,
which is observed with annual mean values, but also with daytime values (shown in Rabl & Scholz (2005)).
Law of mass action at measuring sites in Baden-Württemberg 1990-2003
y = 34,997x - 318,1 R2 = 0,74 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 NO2 (µg/m³) NO *O 3 (µ g /m ³) ² main roads (2)
urban traffic influence (5)
urban background (18)
rural background (4)
Trend all sites except rural BG
Figure 6: Relationship between NO, NO2 and ozone according to the law of mass action
at air quality monitoring sites in Baden-Württemberg 1990-2003 (annual means). Figure 6: Equilibre photochimique entre NO, NO2 et ozone aux stations de qualité de l'air à
Baden-Württemberg de 1990 à 2003 (moyennes annuelles).
The importance of this relationship for the situation in the cities is that the three components are tightly coupled and changes in one component affect the others. The increased ozone concentrations due to reduced NO emissions represent an elevated oxidative potential in the atmosphere, resulting
in a constant or even enhanced formation of NO2 according to the product [NO] · [O3].
4 - Second explanation: Changes in diesel vehicle exhaust emissions
The NO2/NOx-ratio in the exhaust emission of diesel cars has also changed over the last years.
Modern diesel cars, which have been significantly increasing in number for several years, are equipped with an oxidation catalytic converter in order to keep within the emission limits for HC
and CO. As a side reaction, these catalytic converters oxidize NO to NO2, with the result that a
considerable part of the vehicle's NOx emission is emitted directly as NO2. This oxidation of NO to
NO2 will probably be performed by any noble metal catalyzed exhaust treatment device, as well as
by catalytically active particle filters. Unfortunately, up to now the database concerning reliable
NO2 (not NOx) emission data of modern cars and exhaust treatment equipment is insufficient.
An experimental proof for the changed NO2/NOx-ratio in the exhaust emission can be deduced
from the results of a measuring campaign with two measuring sites positioned at the same location on opposite sides of the highly frequented national road "B 10" in Karlsruhe. The winter situation presented in figure 7 is characterized by: a) wind in constant windward-leeward-direction, perpen-dicular to the road, with an average wind speed of 1-3 m/s, b) a very low ozone concentration of 1 µg/m³ on average at both sides. Under these conditions, the concentration differences between the two measuring sites represent the contribution directly produced by the road traffic. From the NO-
and NO2-differences a NO2/NOx-ratio of about 0.2 – 0.3 is obtained, which means that about 20%
of the NOx is directly emitted as NO2 during the daytime (with a high proportion of trucks) and
about 30% of the NOx is emitted as NO2 at night (mainly cars). This is far more than the proportion
of 5% which has been assumed for a long time as the direct NO2 emission of vehicles.
NO2/NOx B10 3./4.12.2003 0,0 0,1 0,2 0,3 0,4 0,5 0 3 .12. 2 003 0 6 :0 0 0 3 .12. 2 003 0 8 :0 0 0 3 .12. 2 003 1 0 :0 0 0 3 .12. 2 003 1 2 :0 0 0 3 .12. 2 003 1 4 :0 0 0 3 .12. 2 003 1 6 :0 0 0 3 .12. 2 003 1 8 :0 0 0 3 .12. 2 003 2 0 :0 0 0 3 .12. 2 003 2 2 :0 0 0 3 .12. 2 003 2 4 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 0 2 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 0 4 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 0 6 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 0 8 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 1 0 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 1 2 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 1 4 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 1 6 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 1 8 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 2 0 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 2 2 :0 0 0 4 .12. 2 003 2 4 :0 0 NO 2 /NO x
Figure 7: NO2/NOx-ratio for the concentration difference between opposing measuring sites
on the national road "B 10" in Karlsruhe (details see text)
Figure 7: Relation NO2/NOx pour la différence de concentrations de deux stations de mesure
opposé à la route nationale "B 10" à Karlsruhe (détails en texte)
Conclusion
The changes in diesel vehicle exhaust emissions seem to be the main reason for the slow decrease
or even increase of NO2 concentrations at highly traffic-influenced sites. Since diesel powered cars
are still increasing in number, and NOx, but not NO2-emissions are regulated, it is very probable
that in 2010 the EU limit values for NO2 will be exceeded at locations with heavy traffic burden.
Only a further reduction of motor vehicle NOx emissions or a separate limitation of NO2 emissions
will be effective in reducing the NO2 air concentrations.
References
Rabl P. & W. Scholz (2005): Wechselbeziehungen zwischen Stickstoffoxid- und Ozon-Immissionen, Datenanalysen aus Baden-Württemberg und Bayern 1990-2003. Immissionsschutz, Heft 1, p 21-25. UMEG (2004): Emissionskataster Baden-Württemberg, www.emissionserfassung.de/emi/ee_index.html Umweltbundesamt, Germany (2004): Berichterstattung Emissionen
